Suitability of stock cars in question at Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS -- As winner of two of the past three NASCAR races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Jimmie Johnson is qualified to critique The Brickyard.

Despite his recent success, he does not think the track is all that suited for stock cars. But in the same breath, he couldn't imagine dropping Indy from the NASCAR schedule.

"I think we need to be here," NASCAR's three-time defending champion said Friday. "I really do, and not run it through the (road course) infield. We need to be on the oval."

Opened in 1909, the speedway is the most hallowed facility in motorsports. With a rich history and a prestige factor found nowhere else in racing, NASCAR was thrilled when Indy opened its gate to stock cars in 1994. The welcoming coincided with NASCAR's unprecedented growth spurt, and inclusion at The Brickyard gave the good 'ol boys some much-needed credibility.

Then one race destroyed it all.

Last year's visit to Indy was a fiasco, largely because of Goodyear's horribly incorrect tire selection. Because Goodyear miscalculated on the combined effects of the full-time use of NASCAR's new car with the unique Indianapolis layout and surface, the tires brought to the track were unable to last an entire fuel run.

Afraid that teams would try to stretch the rubber to dangerous lengths, NASCAR threw cautions every 10-to-12 laps to force teams to pit for a tire change. The lack of action enraged the estimated 240,000 fans in attendance, humiliated NASCAR and Goodyear and raised questions about the suitability of stock cars with the speedway.

Goodyear worked tirelessly the past 11 months to solve the problem and returned this year with an improved product it believes will ensure a spectacular show Sunday.

"I think a bit of our reputation is at stake," admitted Greg Stucker, director of race-tire sales for Goodyear.

Regardless of what happens Sunday, questions will linger about the long-term marriage of NASCAR and Indy. Good tires or bad tires, the fact remains the speedway simply is not conducive for great NASCAR racing.

-Jeremy Mayfield is back under suspension for a failed random drug test after an appeals court ruled in NASCAR's favor Friday, issuing a stay on the injunction that gave the driver the right to return to the race track.

The one-page decision by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stands until NASCAR's full appeal can be heard.

NASCAR appealed to the Richmond, Va., court after a federal judge July 1 lifted Mayfield's suspension based on the argument that the drug testing system was flawed.

Mayfield was suspended May 9 for failing a random test done eight days earlier, and NASCAR has said he tested positive for methamphetamine. Mayfield has denied ever using the illegal drug.

-- from wire reports

U.S. District Court Judge Graham Mullen still has NASCAR's request before him to overturn his earlier decision based on its claim that Mayfield tested positive for methamphetamine a second time July 6.

He is not entered in Sunday's race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and has indicated he has no intention of returning to racing as he fights NASCAR. The last remaining employee at Mayfield Motorsports resigned last week, and Mayfield has not entered any events since Mullen's ruling.

With minimal banking and four distinct, tight corners, it's extremely difficult for drivers to run two-wide through the turns. Perfect for IndyCars, the NASCAR stars have yet to figure out how to put on a strong show using the narrow preferred racing groove. Passing is at a premium, and it takes the most skilled drivers years to figure it out.

"For us, it's either been in the fence or victory lane," said Johnson, who has two wins and three finishes of 36th or worse in seven career starts.

"I've hit the wall here a few times pretty hard and I don't want to do that again. You know, it took me a while to get the track. It's tough to pass on. I don't think the track suits a stock car, and if you watch the (Indy) 500, it's tough for those guys to pass, as well. So from just a pure race track perspective, there are better tracks out there for us to race on and put on a better show."

Few will challenge Johnson's assessment, including two-time Brickyard winner Tony Stewart, who considers Indy the most prestigious facility in racing. An Indiana native who grew up dreaming of his chance to race on the famed oval, Stewart would never dare utter a disparaging remark about Indy.

Even he admits Indy isn't the greatest place for a stock car race.

"It's challenging," he said, choosing his words carefully. "The hard thing is it's not a track that gets wide like Chicago or some of the other places we go to. You have to get your car right in the one spot on the race track that matters most, on the bottom. It makes strategy a really big key. But it always comes down to whose team has done the best job and who has the fastest car. No one has backed into a win here."

But Stewart, a businessman with ownership in race tracks of his own, isn't sure a copycat of Indy would make it far in today's auto racing.

"I don't know if I was going to build a track in this era I'd build it in this shape," he said. "It's about the history of this facility and all of what has gone on here. There's no other place like it in the world. At least someone was creative enough to build a one-of-a-kind race track and not three or four race tracks that are shaped exactly the same."

Jeff Burton agreed, insisting a track operator would never be able to lure NASCAR to a similar facility.

"If someone came to NASCAR with this track in 2010 ... it would be ridiculed," he said. "The same with Darlington. There are some race tracks that it's OK because it's historic. There are times that history outweighs other things, and this race track is an example of that."

Not everyone is in awe of the history, though.

"This is just another race track," Kyle Busch shrugged.

But just like all the other drivers, it's a track where Busch wants to win.

"This is one of the big three that are on my list. I don't come in here saying that, 'I need to win here' or 'I have to win here,'" he said. "It's a place you want to win at, of course. All you can do is do the best of what your equipment will allow you to do."

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